South Fork football: Viera forfeits opener in light of hazing incident
Football season begins this week for Treasure Coast teams but for one team, their season has already begun with a victory.
South Fork was due to host Viera Friday night but in light of the Hawks' football program currently suspended after a hazing incident last week, the Bulldogs have accepted a forfeit from Viera after efforts to find a replacement game for Week 1 were unsuccessful.
The hazing incident at Viera in which members of the football team simulated sex acts on fellow teammates resulted in the suspension of the Hawks' program and suspension of head coach Shane Staples on Sunday.
With the uncertainty of Friday's game, South Fork searched for a possible replacement opponent for its season opener but the programs they contacted could not make a game happen on short notice.
South Fork athletic director Ed Geiger informed Brevard County athletic director Kevin Robinson of the Bulldogs' decision to accept the forfeit Tuesday afternoon.
"The people I feel the worst for are all of the Viera kids, parents and the community, the student-athletes that weren't involved with this, I feel terrible for them," Geiger said. "We tried, myself, coach (Antwan) Blatch, we all worked to try to find a game (for us), but it just didn't happen, just too short a notice. (Accepting the forfeit) was the decision we had to do to protect our own interests. Ultimately we wanted to be on the field."
In addition to accepting the forfeit, South Fork will be reimbursed by Viera to make up the part of the gate that the Bulldogs would have received for a home game.
According to Florida Today, Brevard County Superintendent of Schools Mark Rendell said Sunday that members of the football team will be required to participate in an anti-hazing educational before the possibility of the program being reinstated takes place.
On Monday, the Brevard County Sherriff's Office announced it is investigating the incident in partnership with Brevard Public Schools and the administration at Viera.
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South Fork is coming off a 2-8 season in 2022 but performed well in a 14-6 victory last week against Somerset Academy Canyons in preseason action.
The Bulldogs will play their first game on the field on Thursday, Aug. 31 at Fort Pierce Westwood.
Bryan Cooney is the high school sports reporter for Treasure Coast Newspapers. He can be reached at bcooney@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Viera football forfeits season opener to South Fork
